Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Jr. Blues host Brendan's Buddies charity game

Press Release

On November 3rd, the St. Louis Jr. Blues face off against Quad City Jr. Flames in a NA3HL divisional match up at 2:00 pm at the Affton Ice Rink.  Although a very important hockey game will take place, the Jr. Blues will be playing for a  great cause, their #1 fan Brendan Staub and the “Brendan’s Buddies” Day at the Jr. Blues Game.

Brendan is a former Affton hockey player and the son of the Jr. Blues goalie coach Mark Staub. When he was just 8 ½ years old, Brendan was suffered from major seizures that doctors explained where caused by bilateral calcifications on his brain.  The doctors said the calcifications had stopped growing and with medications Brendan remained seizure free from May 2004 through August 2004.  When his seizures returned in October 2004 an MRI was conducted to make sure the calcifications were not growing, they weren't.  Instead it showed Brendan had a rapid growing tumor in his right temporal lobe of his brain.  The tumor was removed immediately and the surgery was a success!  They were told that Brendan's seizures would get better.   Instead, the seizures were getting worse, Brendan would suffer up to 50 seizures a day.  Brendan had been diagnosed with multiple diseases,  all were wrong.

In July of 2006 Schriner’s Hospital claimed that Brendan’s calcifications were still growing.  In November of that year, Brendan suffered a stroke like episode that put him in a 3 day seizure.  Since then, Brendan suffered four more stoke like episodes that has affected his vision.  These stroke like episodes have occurred in his occipital lobe of his brain that controls his vision.  In January of 2007 Brendan had his first appointment at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota.  He arrived in Minnesota with very poor vision, 20/500.   The doctors had only given Brendan two years to live.  Brendan's brain had been taken over from an undiagnosed white matter disease.

The doctors knew that they had to do something fast and they had to be aggressive.  They went with an experimental drug (IVIg immunuogloblun) for Brendan.  It worked! With these treatments the disease has remained contained, he has been seizure free for two years, and his vision is getting better, but his vision still comes and goes.  Brendan has been taking several trips a year to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN looking for answers to his medical problems.  To this date, Brendan’s illness has not been diagnosed.  Brendan still receives these very costly IVIg treatments every two weeks to keep him alive.

To help their #1 Fan and the Staub family, the Jr. Blues will raise money for Brendan’s foundation, “Brendan’s Buddies.”  The Jr. Blues will donate $10 for every goal scored to Brendan’s Buddies and encourage the fans in attendance to make a donation of $1 to $10 for every goal scored by the Jr. Blues.  Additionally, the Jr. Blues will wear a special jersey for the game.  At the conclusion of the game, anyone can purchase the game worn jersey for $30 will all of the jersey proceeds being donated to Brendan's Buddies.

(Nathan can be reached at nathanfournier@mainehockeyjournal.com)

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